Valred found it unusual. Normally at this time, his mother would still be working in Drakenhof City or inspecting one of the estates in the county. If she had gone to a more distant estate or village, it was possible she wouldn't return for several days. He hadn't expected her to come back so early today.
"Did something happen, Mother?" Valred set down his half-empty glass of juice and asked.
"Valred, you went into the city today, didn't you?" Lady Winsor sat down beside him and inquired.
"Yes," Valred nodded, admitting it frankly.
"Did you encounter anything unusual?" Lady Winsor continued.
"Well, there was a small incident," Valred nodded again and proceeded to recount how he had come across the group of freelance soldiers and what had transpired afterward.
"You handled it well," Lady Winsor nodded approvingly. "You upheld our dignity without being overly harsh."
"It's all thanks to the guidance you, Master Elson, and Lady Trixie have given me," Valred replied modestly.
"However, there's another matter you should consider," Lady Winsor said. "I've just received a request. The merchant who hired those soldiers wants to meet with you and apologize for his subordinates' rudeness."
"Really?" Valred was slightly surprised. "But I had no intention of punishing him."
"People often misunderstand us because we're blood-drinking monsters," Lady Winsor said with a rare smile. "They fear us. I imagine the merchant feels the same way."
"If that's the case, then I'll just ignore him," Valred shook his head. "Tell him that as long as he obeys Sylvania's laws, he'll be fine. I don't want to meet someone like that."
"If you don't wish to, that's fine. But I suggest you think it over. After all, he's a fairly influential merchant. If he's offering an apology, he's likely to bring a generous gift."
Lady Winsor's words caught Valred off guard, and he couldn't help but ask, "Are you saying he wants to bribe me?"
Lady Winsor laughed. "Why call it a bribe? And could he even bribe you? You're the Count of Carstein—the entire county is yours. Would you sell yourself?"
Seeing Valred's confusion, Lady Winsor continued with a smile, "He probably sees this as an opportunity. Given your unique status and young age, investing in you early could yield significant benefits in the future."
"I see," Valred nodded. "If you think so, then I'll arrange to meet him."
After settling the matter, Isabella returned home from school. The Carstein family gathered together, chatted for a while, and had dinner. Lady Winsor then returned to her office to work, while Isabella pestered Valred to teach her more about magic.
"Can't you learn it at school? Why ask your younger brother, who's six years your junior?" Valred was exasperated. His sister was fourteen now, old enough to attend civic assemblies. Why was she still so childish? Couldn't she act more mature?
"I can't help it. That woman is so biased. She's been secretly teaching you so much more," Isabella complained. The "woman" she referred to was, of course, Lady Trixie, who had also been her teacher during her four years of basic education. But Isabella had only learned what was standard for young vampires.
"Don't speak ill of our teacher," Valred shook his head with a wry smile. "It's not favoritism—it's just that the pace of teaching varies based on individual ability."
"Whatever… You always take her side—fine, fine, I get it. You're a genius, the smartest Count in all of Sylvania. If you don't want to teach me, forget it," Isabella pouted, turning to head upstairs to her room.
Seeing her in a huff, Valred knew that if he didn't appease her, he'd be the one to suffer. He quickly ran over, took her hand, and sweet-talked her, calling her "big sister" and asking what she wanted to learn, promising to teach her directly.
Maya, who had been silently observing the situation, watched as Valred and Isabella walked hand in hand toward the basement. She thought to herself, "The young master is so good to his sister…"
The next day, Isabella had even more reason to knock on Valred's door early—it was his first day of school. Ignoring his protests of "It's only 6:30… I don't need to get up this early," she dragged him out of bed. As a result, Valred was still groggy during breakfast and nearly face-planted into his soup.
After breakfast, Valred finally felt a bit more awake. It was still before 7:00, and classes at the academy usually started at 8:00. If a student's chosen class began later, they could arrive even later. Since it was Valred's first day, Isabella had volunteered to have him follow her schedule, so her classes would be his for the day.
Isabella only had two classes on Monday: Intermediate Alchemy at 9:30 in the morning and Intermediate Potion-Making at 1:30 in the afternoon.
Due to the low birth rate among vampires, the faculty at Sylvania's academies was disproportionately large. In fact, there were often more teachers than students. Some niche courses even had no students at all.
As a result, the academies were very accommodating to students. While each course had a fixed schedule, students could attend whenever they wanted, leave whenever they wanted, and even skip the next session if they chose.
There were no exams, no grades, and no rankings or competitions among students. As the vampires themselves put it, they didn't encourage competition among their kind.
Under such conditions, the education of young vampires relied heavily on self-discipline. Yet Valred had never heard of any student squandering their education and becoming a failure under this lenient system. It was a testament to the strong self-discipline of the vampire race.
The academies had no grades or exams. The only proof of a student's progress was the annual year-end test. Students could approach their teachers for an assessment, and if the teacher deemed them competent, they would receive a certificate for that subject. Accumulating enough certificates allowed a student to graduate—though they could continue studying if they wished.
Valred was already aware of all this. In fact, given his current abilities, he could graduate immediately if he wanted. That was why he was so annoyed that his sister hadn't let him sleep in.
He had already completed the intermediate levels of alchemy and potion-making during his basic education, so he didn't need to attend those classes. He thought he should spend his time attending Dean Asta's lectures on military theory or more advanced magical subjects.
But Isabella's will was not to be swayed. She had decided that Valred would spend the entire day with her, and there was no arguing with her.
"At least let me visit Lady Celia before school to see my beloved pet Elsa—"
"—No!"
And so, after breakfast, Isabella practically shoved Valred into her carriage like a **. The ghostly coachman cracked the whip, and the carriage sped off toward the academy.
"My maid isn't even on board yet!"
"—Quiet!"